Feb. 10, 2025
Photo by Karen Clifford
Embedded counseling services are becoming increasingly common in veterinary medical programs, but their effectiveness has not historically been measured. A new study by University of Missouri researchers revealed that embedded counseling services may enhance access to mental health care and lead to significant reductions in psychological distress among veterinary trainees.
“It’s the first study, as far as we know, to evaluate the effectiveness of mental health counseling for veterinary trainees,” said Kerry Karaffa, a licensed psychologist at the Mizzou College of Veterinary Medicine. “Through our study on embedded counseling models, we found only one in three veterinary mental health practitioners were collecting outcome data with their clients. Data is important to evaluate whether what we’re doing is working. If students know that there are good outcomes associated with counseling, they may be more likely to seek help.”
For the study, Karaffa partnered with fellow Mizzou psychologists Tiffany Sanford-Martens and Anne Meyer. Together, the trio analyzed client data from 437 Mizzou doctoral veterinary medicine students, veterinary interns and veterinary residents who participated in embedded counseling services between 2016 and 2024.
They found veterinary trainees who took advantage of embedded counseling services reported improvements in psychological distress on every scale of the Counseling Center Assessment of Psychological Symptoms, which include depression, anxiety, academic distress, eating concerns and substance use. The study also identified several issues veterinary trainees may be navigating alongside mental health challenges, including financial stress, chronic health problems and histories of traumatic experiences.
“These data suggest embedded counseling programs may enable veterinary students to manage their personal and academic challenges more effectively during their training,” Karaffa said.
Karaffa also said the insights gained from veterinary medicine could be applied more broadly, leading to better care for all students and a deeper understanding for mental health providers.
“Client Characteristics and the Effectiveness of Embedded Counseling Services in a College of Veterinary Medicine” was published in the Journal of Veterinary Medical Education.
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